Monday, August 29, 2016

NCRI – There is still no news about the fate of Iranian human rights activist Sahar Beheshti who was arrested yesterday at a ceremony remembering her brother, a dissident blogger who was killed under torture by the mullahs’ regime.

On Friday August 26, suppressive forces raided the family home of martyr Sattar Beheshti, who was arrested in November 2013 and was martyred under brutal torture. His family and friends had gathered at a ceremony to mark his birthday.

During the attack, the regime’s suppressive forces harshly beat Ms. Sahar Beheshti, Sattar’s sister and her husband, and arrested them and a number of participants in the event. Sahar Beheshti was transferred to an unknown location. A number of detainees including her husband were subsequently released with a summons to be called by repressive organs.

Last night the mother and husband of Sahar Beheshti went to various police stations and jails in search of her. The authorities in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison told other members of their family and friends that Sahar was not being kept there. The regime’s judiciary and prison service in Robat Karim, Parand and Tehran are failing to accept responsibility for her arrest.

Sahar’s mother, Ms. Gohar Eshqi, is believed to be in a very poor state of health and is suffering from a heart condition.Following Sahar’s arrest, Ms. Eshqi said: “My son was sacrificed for Iran, and I’m prepared to lose my daughter in the path of Iran’s freedom as well.”

The Iranian Resistance on Friday called on international human rights authorities to take immediate action to release Sahar Beheshti. The religious fascism ruling Iran in fear of an outburst of public anger and disgust, cannot even tolerate the martyrs’ memorial ceremonies.

NCRI - Friday 23 August 2016 five converted Christians who had gone for sightseeing and fishing with their families were detained by the agents of Intelligence Ministry. The whereabouts and condition of them is unknown.

According to news sources from inside Iran, Ramil Bet Tamraz, Amin Naderafshar, Hadi Askari, M Dehnavi and Amirsina Dashti with their wifes and children went to the city of Boroujerd in the province of Tehran for fishing and picnics. Around half past one in the afternoon, they were attacked by security forces, men and women were separated and then Amin Nadrafshar who asked them to show the arrest warrant was severely beaten.

A source close to the families stated: “The security forces detained and transferred men to an undisclosed location, and families are unaware of their condition.”

Ramil Bet Tamraz, is the son of Victor Bet Tamraz the Assyrian priest who was arrested at his home on Christmas celebrations on 5 January 2014.

Rev. Victor was verbally accused of "illegal missionary activities, running a Christian house church, and publishing and distributing the Bible". He was released on bail on 10 March 2014. And is waiting a summons from the court to defend the charges related to his Christian activities.

It is feared that the intelligence agents coerce them to false confessions as is common in Iran prisons.

Anyone concerned by a perceived warming of relations between the U.S. and Iran can rest somewhat assured as of this week: The two countries' interactions, particularly on the high seas, most definitely remain hostile.

Recent days have witnessed repeated incidents in which boats belonging to the navy of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps harassed and – according to the U.S. Navy – acted outright dangerously in close proximity to American ships in the Persian Gulf. It remains unclear specifically what Iran hoped to achieve with the encounters. But regardless of what prompted the provocations, the outcome the Iranians sought was all but certain.'They knew they were going to provoke a response, they just went as far as they could,' says Anthony Cordesman, with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. 'The clear message is, 'We're here. We are a significant threat. We can demonstrate to everyone in the Gulf that we are capable of doing this and willing to do it.''Iran could be airing continued grievances or sending a larger message to its adversaries on any one of a series of issues.Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, for example, believes the U.S. has not followed through on commitments to the deal it struck with Tehran over its nuclear program. The U.S. continues a military build-up of sorts through massive arms deals with its traditional partners in the Middle East, which also happen to be Iran's sworn enemies.Tehran also might feel empowered by its strengthened relationship with Moscow, as shown through Russia's temporarily deploying warplanes to an airbase in Iran for operations in Syria.The U.N. General Assembly begins in New York a few weeks, where Iran will likely continue its traditional arguments for greater influence in world affairs. And, more generally, Iran is expected to continue its years long campaign to prove it can, and should, serve as the principal power in its neighborhood.Whatever the reason behind this latest activity, it arguably achieved its goal.'You do not necessarily need to turn this into a publicity issue because you don't have to. Is there any place that didn't get the news?' Cordesman says.The encounters provoked sharp responses from the Department of Defense and the ships themselves, one of which fired warning shots in response. A U.S. Navy spokesman called it 'a dangerous, harassing situation that could have led to further escalation.'On Tuesday, four high-speed IRGC vessels came within 300 yards of the U.S. destroyer Nitze while it was exiting the very narrow Strait of Hormuz. The ship exercised the U.S. Navy's typical escalation of warnings, from blasting its horn and sending radio warnings to firing flares.On Wednesday, Iranian vessels approached the U.S. coastal patrol ships Tempest and Squall in the northern Gulf, and did not respond when hailed by the two ships' radios. The Tempest fired warning flares, and the vessels came close enough to the Squall for it to fire warning shots from its .50-caliber machine gun.The Navy said the warning shots did not cause any damage.'This situation presented a drastically increased risk of collision, and the Iranian vessel refused to safely maneuver in accordance with internationally recognized maritime rules of the road, despite several request and warnings via radio, and visual and audible warnings from both U.S. ships,' Navy Cmdr. Bill Urban, a spokesman for the Navy's 5th Fleet, told the U.S. Naval Institute. He said the Iranian ships' high rate of speed as they approached the U.S. ships in international waters, along with their bow crossings at short range and disregard of multiple warning attempts, 'created a dangerous, harassing situation that could have led to further escalation.'The circumstances of these latest incidents, particularly the swarming effect the Iranian navy vessels hoped to achieve, remain a central concern of American Navy commanders whose ships represent high-profile targets in contentious parts of the world.Experts in these kinds of military encounters say the U.S. Navy maintains the ability to defend its vessels from an attack like these, particularly if its ships were operating in a situation in which they didn't have to exercise an abundance of caution, as was the case this week.'This just may be an IRGC decision to periodically test the U.S. Navy and its rules of engagement,' says Paul Hughes, an expert in international security in the Middle East and Africa with the U.S. Institutes of Peace. 'They're trying to do that in a very constrained way, and in a very constrained place, itself – the Straits of Hormuz.''It will continue,' Hughes adds. 'This is not a new phenomenon. They have been doing this for a long time, and it's just another test of the Navy, to see how the U.S. responds, and, 'Maybe if we're lucky we can scare the ship's captain to divert off its course and then we have a big propaganda victory there.''

Friday, August 26, 2016

Robert Keith, 26, was detained on suspicion of indecent exposure. In an interview with officers, he confessed to several acts of sexual indecency and voyeurism, according to Sgt. Vince Lewis, Phoenix police spokesman.

As many as 20 counts of such acts dating to 2013 are being attributed to Keith, Lewis said in a statement.

According to police, Keith would approach a window and peer in while committing lewd acts. Keith also confessed to drug use at the time of these crimes, Lewis said.

The incidents happened on the Paul Henry Trail between Kalamazoo Avenue and S. Division Avenue in Gaines Township. The first incident happened on Aug. 10 and the second on Aug. 20, according to a news release from the Kent County Sheriff’s Department.

In one of the incidents, the victim was able to take a cellphone photo of the suspect.

Anyone with information is asked to call detective Hinds at 616.632.6140 or Silent Observer at 616.774.2345.

The announcement Tuesday, carried on a website affiliated with the Guard's cyber arm, says those detained used social media like the messaging app Telegram, which is popular in Iran.The announcement says those detained or summoned made posts that were considered immoral, were related to modeling, or which insulted religious beliefs. It says the Guard only took action after 'judicial procedures' were completed, without elaborating.In May, authorities announced an operation targeting those involved on Instagram.The arrests are part of a larger crackdown by hard-liners on youth and dissidents.

Sky News also reported that Iran has arrested or summoned about 450 social media users.Users of apps such as Instagram, Telegram and WhatsApp have been targeted.A similar report was run by the ISNA news agency.Facebook and Twitter are banned in the Islamic republic, though software that provides access is easily available.More than half of Iran's 80 million population is online.Telegram, an instant messaging app, has more than 20 million users.In May, a committee headed by President Hassan Rouhani is said to have set a one-year deadline for foreign social media to hand over data on their Iranian users.

On August 19, 2016 at approximately 10:30am a Transit Police officer assigned to the Central District was on patrol at the MBTA's Back Bay station. While there he was informed a male had just entered into the women's restroom. The officer immediately began to proceed in that direction and was ultimately directed to a male, later identified asTaha Hamid, 28, of Dorchester who was observed exiting the women's bathroom. At this time the officer was approached and informed by a female victim of the following; while inside the women's bathroom Hamid entered and pulled down his pants fully exposing his genitals to the victim. After doing so Hamid then proceeded to urinate into the sink and stated " This is a man's bathroom now !".

The Latest on a rural Colorado sheriff accused of sexually assaulting a developmentally delayed inmate (all times local):

4:40 p.m.

An arrest affidavit says a rural Colorado sheriff is accused of taking a developmentally delayed inmate to his home, sexually assaulting her and threatening to put her in prison for the rest of her life if she told anyone.

District Attorney Brittny Lewton says Sedgwick County Sheriff Tom Hanna was arrested at his office Tuesday on suspicion of first-degree official misconduct, sexual assault on an at-risk person, sexual assault by a correctional officer and solicitation of prostitution.

An investigator with the district attorney's office says in the affidavit the inmate said Hanna offered to pay her $60, forced her to strip and sexually assaulted her Aug. 10.

The affidavit made public Wednesday says Hanna denied the allegations and told investigators he was interviewing the inmate after she reported having information about acrime on her cellphone.

A 25-year-old man who was considered a family friend was charged Tuesday with kidnapping, sexually assaulting and killing a 5-year-old girl from central Minnesota — leaving her body submerged in a swamp and covered with debris.

Authorities say Zachary Todd Anderson abducted Alayna Ertl early Saturday from her home in Watkins, about 70 miles northwest of Minneapolis. Alayna's body was found later that day.

A preliminary autopsy found Alayna was strangled. There was also evidence of blunt force trauma to her head and sexual assault.

Anderson, of Coon Rapids, was charged in a Minnesota courtroom with multiple counts including murder, sexual assault, kidnapping and theft of a motor vehicle.

His bail was set at $2 million, or $1 million with conditions. The Star Tribune reported that he requested a public defender. A woman who answered the phone at the public defender's office said she had no information to release.

According to the criminal complaint, Anderson was a friend of Alayna's father. The two men played softball Friday night and went out with friends before heading to the Ertl home.

The girl's mother told authorities she last saw Alayna at 2:30 a.m., when she carried her daughter to her room after she fell asleep on the couch.

The family discovered Alayna was missing at about 8:30 a.m. Saturday. Anderson was also gone, along with the family's truck. Authorities were called at about 10 a.m., and a statewideAmber Alert was issued.

Anderson's father called authorities about four hours later, saying he believed his son was the suspect, and that Anderson had called earlier that day and asked to use the family's cabin near Motley, about 80 miles to the north.

Authorities went to the cabin and found the truck. No one was inside the cabin, but a 20-gauge shotgun was on the kitchen table with ammunition, along with an apparent suicide note that seemed to have blood on it.

Officers sent K-9 units into the woods and found Anderson in knee-deep water in a swampy area, with cuts on his left wrist.

When asked about the girl, he initially responded "What girl?"

Anderson eventually told investigators that Alayna was hidden in the swamp under debris. Officers searched the area and found her naked body submerged in the water and hidden under brush and other debris.

Alyana's online obituary says she had finished pre-school at Eden Valley-Watkins Elementary School. It also says she gave joy to others by always smiling.

"She was an animal lover, a princess, a singer, a great friend to everyone she met, and was our peanut," the obituary said. "She loved learning from her brother, and always gave the best hugs."

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations' World Food Program is warning that the number of people in need of food assistance in northeast Nigeria has risen to 4.5 million — nearly twice as many as in March.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday that a worsening economy could cause this figure to rise by another 1 million as early as next month. The WFP is scaling up its response, aiming to reach 700,000 people with food and cash in the coming months.

Dujarric says the agency still needs $52 million to providing life-saving assistance until the end of the year in the region.

Dujarric also says the World Health Organization is ramping up its response in the same region because more than half of the health facilities in Borno State, the area most severely affected, are not functioning

The document said "an attack on German territory, requiring conventional defence of the nation, is unlikely". But, it said, a major security threat to the nation in future could not be ruled out, so civil defence measures were necessary.

Soon, Germans began tweeting ironically under the hashtag "Hamsterkaeufe" (panic-buying).

PHOENIX -- A man has been killed in a Phoenix neighborhood that’s been hit by a string of fatal shootings that authorities say appear to be the work of serial killer,reports CBS Phoenix affiliate KPHO-TV.

Police told the station a man was shot at about 10 p.m. Wednesday, then walked to a house in the Maryvale neighborhood, and collapsed and died outside.

Sunday, August 21, 2016

ISTANBUL – A terrorist attack on a wedding hall on Saturday has left at least 30 dead and dozens wounded in the southern Turkish city of Gaziantep, the NTV network reported.

As the press was told by provincial Gov. Ali Yerlikaya, who defined the bombing as a “terrorist attack” without indicating who might be the perpetrators, the bomb was detonated at a wedding party in the downtown area just before midnight.

A legislator of the CHP opposition party, Mehmet Gokdag, told the network that according to local authorities, at least 13 people were killed.

For his part, a lawmaker of the ruling AKP party, Mehmet Erdogan, said on the same TV channel that this was probably a suicide bombing.

The wedding party was being held on a downtown street of Gaziantep, a hub of southern Turkey, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the Syrian border and the scene of rearguard activities by numbers Syrian armed groups.

A great many ambulances have rushed to the scene and it is feared that the number of dead and wounded could increase.

WASHINGTON – The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Justice Department are investigating possible U.S. links to an alleged corruption scheme involving deposed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, CNN reported, citing sources from those agencies.

Among those under investigation by U.S. authorities are Paul Manafort, a political consultant who recently resigned as chairman of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s campaign; and prominent lobbyist Tony Podesta, the brother of the chairman of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

Last weekend, The New York Times reported that Manafort appeared on a handwritten ledger maintained by the party of Yanukovych, whose government – deposed in a popular uprising in February 2014 – was closely allied with Russia.

Entries showing $12.7 million in undisclosed cash payments designated for Manafort were made between 2007-2012, the Times reported last Sunday, citing Ukraine’s newly formed National Anti-Corruption Bureau.

But law-enforcement officials cited by CNN said that neither Manafort nor his firm were the focus of the investigation, which also is examining possible irregularities at the Podesta Group, a Washington-based lobbying firm led by Tony Podesta, and other consulting firms.

After the Times’ report surfaced, Manafort issued a statement Monday vehemently denying any wrongdoing, saying he had worked on overseas campaigns but had “never received a single ‘off-the-books cash payment’ as falsely ‘reported’ by The New York Times, nor have I ever done work for the governments of Ukraine or Russia.”

“Further, all of the political payments directed to me were for my entire political team: campaign staff (local and international), polling and research, election integrity and television advertising. The suggestion that I accepted cash payments is unfounded, silly, and nonsensical,” the statement added.

The Podesta Group, for its part, said on Friday that it had hired a law firm to study whether it conducted any improper lobbying on behalf of pro-Russian politicians in Ukraine.

The FBI’s investigation stems from a probe by Ukraine’s current pro-European administration into the finances of Yanukovych’s deposed government, which they say ran a vast corruption network.

Trump’s opponents have seized on the reports about the undisclosed cash payments to Manafort to bolster their claims about possible Russian interference in the U.S. elections.

Those suspicions have been partly fueled by Trump’s frequent expressions of sympathy and admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

MEXICO CITY – Eight workers were killed in an accident at a highway construction site in southern Mexico, the Guerrero state Attorney General’s Office said.

The accident occurred during construction of the Acapulco-Zihuatanejo highway, known as the new Route of the Sun.

“Regarding the regrettable accident at the construction site of the new Route of the Sun, Acapulco-Zihuatanejo, eight construction workers lost their lives near the town of Los Organos de San Agustin,” the state AG’s office said in a bulletin.

It added that it would make sure the construction company guarantees swift payment of life-insurance benefits owed to the workers’ family members.

It also said the company would expedite the process involved in returning the bodies to their relatives.

The accident occurred at 5:50 p.m. Friday when the formwork of a bridge under construction collapsed and brought down part of the road, leaving several people trapped, local media reported.

MEXICO CITY – Officers of Mexico’s Federal Police executed 22 civilians during a May 2015 operation on a ranch in the western state of Michoacan, the independent National Human Rights Commission said Thursday.

A total of 43 people, including a police officer, died at the ranch and 22 of those deaths were the result of “arbitrary execution,” the chairman said as he presented the conclusions of the commission’s investigation.

“Excessive use of force” was the cause of four other civilian fatalities and a fifth person appeared to have been run over by a vehicle, according to the report.

Authorities have maintained that the deaths at Rancho del Sol took place in the course of a gunfight between police and suspects.

The commission, however, determined that police tampered with the scene by placing guns next to 16 bodies and that the officers involved submitted false accounts of the events.

The human rights commission also found fault with the actions of investigators from the Michoacan Attorney General’s Office, who deviated from protocol and mishandled ballistics evidence.

Medical examiners likewise came under criticism for irregularities in the autopsies and delays in the return of bodies to their families.

Responding to the rights commission document, the chairman of Mexico’s National Security Committee rejected the characterization of arbitrary executions and defended the actions of police.

“The use of arms was necessary and the police acted, in our judgment, in legitimate defense,” Renato Sales said.

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

LIMA – A magnitude-5.3 earthquake left four people dead, 68 injured and 1,253 families homeless in a rural area of Caylloma province in southern Peru’s Arequipa region, to which the authorities have sent humanitarian aid in helicopters and by land.

The fatalities were an 80-year-old woman, another age 70 and her granddaughter, a minor, as well as United States citizen Evan Baum Kent, 66, whose body was found in the Hotel Colca Eco Inn, which was destroyed by the temblor, according to the Yanque district governor.

The Indeci emergency management service reported that 605 homes were destroyed, along with three churches, a hotel, four schools, a bar, highways and irrigation canals.

The quake affected the districts of Ichupampa, Chivay, Achoma, Yanque, Coporaque, Maca, Magrigal, Tapay, Huambo and Lari, according to Indeci, and occurred at 9:58 p.m. Sunday, with its epicenter at 8 kilometers (5 miles) southwest of Chivay and the hypocenter at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles).

Though at first the regional governor of Arequipa, Yamila Osorio, said that according to preliminary reports nine people could have died, it was later confirmed that no more than four people lost their lives.

The Defense Ministry reported that eight of the more seriously injured were flown to the city of Arequipa in helicopters of the armed forces and the National Police.

Kent, the only foreigner killed in the quake, was put on the first flight. His wife survived but was injured in the hotel where they were staying.

Indeci along with the Arequipa regional government, the Red Cross and the Ministry of the Woman transported to the scene of the disaster, by land and by air, humanitarian aid including food, blankets and mattresses for those affected

Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski announced that his government has ordered emergency aid sent to the earthquake area, which is being visited Tuesday by 1st Vice President and Transport and Communications Minister Martin Vizcarra and Defense Minister Mariano Gonzalez.

PARIS – More than 800 immigrants were evacuated from several makeshift camps around the French capital on the Paris Police Prefecture said.

Police chief Yann Drouet told French media that between 800-900 immigrants were camped near the Place de la Bataille-de-Stalingrad and the operation to remove them began at dawn.

The immigrants, mostly Afghan, Sudanese, Eritrean and Somali, were taken to a local police station where their legal status was reviewed and they were offered advice and support if necessary, said Drouet.

The Prefecture has launched various eviction operations since late July.

Some human rights organizations have denounced the evictions, which they consider focused more on expelling the immigrants from the area than offering solutions or seeking alternative accommodation

VIENNA – Turkey rejected on Wednesday the accusations leveled by Germany on Ankara’s alleged support for Islamic organizations in the Middle East, adding that such claims were a new indication of “the distorted mentality” that aims to weaken the country.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the allegations were “a new indication of the distorted mentality, which attempted to weaken Turkey by targeting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish government.”

According to the note, Turkey is waiting for the “necessary explanation” from Germany on the claims, which were reported on Tuesday by German public broadcaster ARD in a document of the German interior ministry.

Turkey added that the origin of the German allegations is “certain political circles” that support the guerrillas of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party in Turkey.

In response to a confidential interpellation in the parliament in Berlin, the German interior ministry said that the Turkish government has become “a center platform in the Middle East” for Islamist groups, adding that Erdogan actively supports such movements.

Saturday, August 13, 2016

TUCSON, Ariz. – Customs and Border Protection officers arrested three Mexican nationals involved in separate weekend attempts to smuggle more than $300,000 in methamphetamine and marijuana through the Port of Nogales.

Officers at the DeConcini crossing seized58 pounds of meth that was discovered withinthe rear bumper.

The first incident occurred early Aug. 6 when officers at the Dennis DeConcini crossing found nearly 58 pounds of meth, worth almost $173,000, concealed inside the back bumper of a Buick SUV driven by a 29-year-old resident of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico.

On Aug. 7, CBP officers working with a narcotics-detection canine at the DeConcini crossing located more than 32 pounds of meth, worth in excess of $96,000, within the cab and dashboard of a Chevy truck driven by a 34-year-old man from Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico.

More than 65 pounds of marijuana were recoveredfrom within the gas tank of a smuggling vehicle,by officers at the Nogales West Mariposa crossing.

Earlier in another Chevy truck, officers and a canine at the Nogales West Mariposa crossing discovered more than 65 pounds of marijuana, worth almost $33,000, in the vehicle’s gas tank. Officers identified the driver as a 30-year-old woman from Santa Ana, Sonora, Mexico.

Officers seized the narcotics and vehicles, and turned the subjects over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.

JACUMBA HOT SPRINGS, Calif.—U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested a man previously convicted of child molestation after he illegally crossed the border in East County on Monday afternoon.

At about 4 p.m., a Border Patrol agent witnessed three people climb over the border fence near Jacumba Hot Springs. Agents responded and encountered the three Mexican nationals hiding in thick brush.

Agents arrested the three men for illegally entering the country and transported them to a nearby Border Patrol station for processing. A records check revealed that one man in the group had been previously deported after serving a six-year prison sentence for “Lewd and Lascivious Acts with a Child under 14.”

In response to this significant apprehension, Chief Patrol Agent Richard A. Barlow said, “I commend the agents involved in this arrest as their efforts reflect San Diego Sector’s commitment to strengthen border security and increase safety in our community.”

The 43-year-old convicted felon was transported to the Metropolitan Correctional Center in San Diego and faces federal charges for reentering the U.S. as a previously deported foreign national.

As of July 31, 2016, Border Patrol agents in San Diego Sector arrested 25,979 people for illegally entering the U.S. between ports of entry.

To prevent the illicit smuggling of humans, drugs, and other contraband, the U.S. Border Patrol maintains a high level of vigilance on corridors of egress away from our Nation’s borders. To report suspicious activity to the U.S. Border Patrol, contact San Diego Sector at (619) 498-9900.